


Miraculous Heroes and Miracle Thieves

by littlest1



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Awesome Nino Lahiffe, Badass Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Chloe is a good friend, F/F, F/M, Fanboy Adrien Agreste, Nice Felix, Or Rather nicer than Cannon, Thief AU, Vigilante AU
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-05-10
Updated: 2020-09-27
Packaged: 2021-03-02 17:42:55
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,653
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24100774
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/littlest1/pseuds/littlest1
Summary: Before there were Five there, there were Four.Before there were Heroes, there were Thieves.Now there are both.And two are caught between.Marinette and Nino were always destined to run the rooftops of Paris. But they didn't always do it on the right side of the law. They and two others had the Court of Miracles, the phantom thieves of Paris. Nearly three years after they left the path of shadows, a calling card appeared and a new game had begun. Now the two face divided loyalties, mysteries that go back centuries, old friends, new enemies, and worst of all school.
Relationships: Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug & Nino Lahiffe
Comments: 2
Kudos: 21





	1. Calling Card

**Author's Note:**

> Alright first things first.  
> Canon  
> All of Season 1  
> Most of Season 2.  
> Changes  
> Chloe never went public as queen bee. She wanted to prove herself as a hero before she revealed her identity to her mother. The rest of the episode played out normally. But Marinette knew from the moment that Audrey dismissed Chloe that she wasn’t going to New York. Only Ladybug and Chat Noir know who she is. She is firmly a hero on team miraculous.  
> Nino knows Alya is Rena Rouge, but she has no idea that he is Carapace.  
> The Characters are now attending University together. While I haven’t chosen departments for all, some are fairly obvious.  
> What is New  
> Everything happened in last year of high school, thus the characters are aged up and most decided to attend their local college
> 
> I do not own Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Chat Noir.

* * *

Marinette sighed as she walked out of her last class of the day. She was so glad that it was the weekend at last. Between classes, assignments, patrol, and the occasional Akuma she was exhausted.

She was glad that Master Fu relented in permitting Nino and Chloe to keep their miraculouses. They were of tremendous help when it came to patrolling and creating strategies, and for sparing. Alya on the other hand had her miraculous, but used sparingly, as the reporter wanted to focus on documenting the fights. Honestly Marinette would have never expected _Chloe_ to be more dedicated to Superheroing than _Alya,_ the girl that quotes Majestica all the time. 

"Hey Mari! Do you have the notes from Professor Verde’s class?" The mayor's daughter called out. Marinette smiled and nodded at her former high school nemesis.

"Here you go. I copied a second set during my break since I knew you weren't going to make it to class this morning," The blue haired girl said, handing over a set of notes that were in her folder.

"You are a star Dupain-Chang," the Blonde said with a grin.

"Don't you forget it Bourgeois," Marinette teased. The girls grinned at one another, glad that their past was behind them. 

The designer bid Chloe goodbye, knowing that her friend had one more class in 20 minutes.

Marinette settled against a nearby tree and sighed deeply. Checking to make sure that there wasn't anyone around she undid the clip of her purse. Tikki quickly flew out and settled on her partner's lap.

"I still find it hard to believe how much your relationship has changed," the Kwami said softly. Paris's heroine giggled.

"It surprises me too," Marinette mused. "Still I am glad that it did."

Mari never thought she would now count Chloe as a friend, at least as a civilian. After fighting side by side for so long, she knew that she could trust Queen Bee, but Chloe Bourgeois? Not a chance. However both girls ended up with a lot of the same classes and by a stroke of luck were assigned as partners for the majority of the term. 

Knowing their grade depended on them cooperating they put their hostility to the side. Though neither said it they were glad to have a familiar face, especially in classes full of strangers.

After several screaming matches, half a dozen ruined designs and countless long study sessions the two built a tentative alliance. It deepened into a friendship, when they realized that they were a scarily successful team, once they pooled their skills and resources together.

Their friends had varying reactions to the friendship. It made Adrien happy to see his two best female friends getting along so well, Nino was perplexed and a little terrified, Alya just didn't understand it and still loathed Chloe, a mutual feeling, and Sabrina was excited that her best friend was beginning to let down her walls.

After resting in the cool shade for a bit Mari decided to head to her own apartment. Tikki flew back into her purse deciding to take a nap.

Thanks to her various commissions for Jagged Stone, she had a nice place off campus that she could afford on her own. It allowed her privacy to moonlight as Ladybug. Though she didn't have to worry about being lonely, her friends stopped by. All. The. Time. It was exasperating as it was sweet. Plus she was never sure who would show up and how long they would stay. Adrien currently held the record of staying three days straight. How he managed to not let Natalie or Gorilla know baffled her. Though she was not complaining about the extra one on one time with the boy that held a large portion of her heart.

Marinette’s thoughts were occupied with the dream of collapsing on her bed and napping until twilight. She had passed her favorite student run cafés, when a conversation caught her attention.

"Did you see the headlines this morning?"

"I know, can you believe that the Court is finally back?"

Marinette froze, thoughts of rest driven out of her mind. She turned to girls who were talking, no not talking,  _ gossiping _ about something that seemed impossible.

"Excuse me. What were you talking about just now?" She asked, trying to reign in her emotions. Thankfully she recognized the brunette as one of her classmates from history.

"Oh! Marinette right? I’m surprised you don't know. Apparently a letter was sent to several prominent papers. A calling card, from the Cour de Miracles!" The brunette girl squealed along with her friend. 

"Apparently they are going after some piece," the blonde paused and looked down at the paper to look up the said item. Marinette's mind raced already knowing what the girl would say, but praying that she was wrong.

"Here it is! The bracelet of shadows."

Marinette's heart plunged. She raced to a store to grab a paper for herself. This could not be happening.

*~*~*~*

Marinette stared at the headlines, willing for the words to change, but knowing they wouldn't.

Court de Miracles. Court of Miracles. She hadn't heard that name since before she became Ladybug.

The Court de Miracles were a group of phantom thieves that would put on a show, grab what they came for, and escape no matter what obstacles they encountered. There were even rare occasions where they skipped the show and grabbed the artifact without ever being spotted. They had won the attention of everyone in Paris. Countless articles and forums were dedicated to the troop, most of them filled with assumptions and speculations. No one knew why they went after the pieces they did, as not all that they had taken were famous. The Court drew many critics as it did fans. But one thing was agreed: the thieves were true artists when it came to heists. 

One day without any warning, the Cour de Miracles vanished without explanation. The public was abuzz for months after, but the news eventually faded. Sure there were occasional fake calling cards sent out, supposed sightings here and there, a few posts about people coming forward as the thieves that were always proved false, and even one or two arrests of copycats, but that was it. There had not been a single legitimate hint about the Court for over two years, at least until now.

As Marinette studied the paper she couldn't help but feel a weight settle on her shoulders. The paper had included a picture of the calling card. It has the same logo as the calling cards from the first time the Court came to town. As much as she wanted to deny it, this looked legit.

' _ To the City of Paris, _

_While it may come as a shock, I have a proclamation. The Court is back in session. Once more the City of Romance will be the stage of our game of shadows. Only this time, there are new_ _players on the board. A butterfly consumed by shadows and symbols of fortune, wisdom, wit, personal power, and witchcraft._

_ The first pawn that we shall take is the Bracelet of Shadows. Now the question is, will anyone be able to stop us from acquiring the bracelet and placing it in the hands of those, that would appreciate it better? Let's find out. The bracelet will be gone before the hour of the witch. _

_ Sincerely, _

_ Court de Miracles _

Marinette took a deep breath and dialed a number.

{"Hey Marzipan! What do I owe this unexpected surprise phone call?"} 

Despite the circumstances, Marinette couldn't help but smile at her friend's voice. 

"Hey" Marinette cursed herself when she heard her voice trembling. She was getting way too emotional.

{"Oh shit. What's wrong? Did you get in a fight with Alya about Chloe again? Is it your parents? Was it one of your classmates being jealous? Say the word and I will team up with the rest of our friends to defend your honor."} The male reassured his friend. It made the Marinette laugh, glad that she made the call to her friend.

"No to all three. I have to say, I would peg you more of a prank or revenge type than defending my honor," The blue haired woman teased her friend. She knew from experience that he was an out of the box thinker when it came to retribution.

{"Nino and Chloe would be all for it, but the other two forget about it."} Marinette could practically hear him rolling his eyes. Still he wasn't completely wrong. Adrien was never one for retaliation and ever since becoming Rena Rouge, Alya had held their friends to a higher standard. This is in spite of her occasionally towing the line when the Ladyblog was involved.

{"Talks of revenge aside. Why the sudden call?"} Her friend asked, shifting the conversation back on track.

Marinette sighed and bit her lip trying to figure out how to best phrase it. Finally she settled on a response. "What I have to talk to you about is going to need privacy. Can you meet me at my apartment?"

{"Alright, but all you have done is make me more curious. Will any of our friends be joining us, or is it just me?"} He asked, knowing she wouldn't budge on talking until she was ready.

"Only you and Nino." Marinette stated firmly. What she needed to talk about didn't involve the other three.

{"Intriguing. I'll save you a call and bring Nino with me."} He muttered the last part.

"Thank you, that would be super helpful." Marinette gushed, relieved that she was saved from another awkward conversation. 

{"Anytime Marzipan. See you soon."} 

"See you soon Nathaniel," Marinette ended the conversation and picked up her pace. She had two very creative guests to prepare for.

*~*~*~*

The first thing Marinette did when she got home was put a still sleeping Tikki in her room. This conversation was for only her, Nino, and Nathan. As much as she loved and trusted the ancient being, there were still things that Tikki didn't know about her chosen wielder. 

Marinette then went to the kitchen and made bruschetta. Cooking and baking helped center the designer when she was nervous. Besides, bad news was easier to swallow with a full stomach, as her Papa would say. She just hoped it proved true tonight.

Almost as if on cue, a knock came from her door. Mari steeled her nerves and greeted her friends. She showed the boys to the kitchen so they could chat and eat before getting down to business. Nino and Nath shared a look, but knew not to push her. 

Once the food had been devoured, Marinette knew she couldn't avoid the conversation any longer. She rose and beckoned the two to follow her into her work room. Once they were inside she closed and locked the door. When Nino opened his mouth to talk, She placed two fingers to her lips. Alert the boys watched as she went over to her desk and opened a hidden latch, pulling out a device that they knew would stop listening devices from working and a tome.

After turning it on the device, Marinette turned to the boys. 

"What the hell Mare?" Nino asked in disbelief.

Marinette said nothing she handed the paper to Nathaniel. She sat down and watched as curiosity, disbelief, and anger appeared on his face before he schooled his expression into a blank mask.

"This is bullshit," the artist said tonelessly. Nino who had just finished reading the article shook his head.

"Dude it's got to be fake," the DJ said, his voice on the edge of hysterical.

"They used the Courts logo," Marinette stated calmly.

"They copied it from one of the pictures online," Nathaniel bit out.

"It was in the same writing style as the old notes," Mari said, not backing down. 

"A devoted fan could fake it. Hell, the papers got several false ones back when the Court was operating and after they left.," Nino offered weakly.

Marinette looked at the boys. She sighed. "Your right. Both the logo and style of writing can easily be explained away. The paper itself talked about how this could be a hoax. There is just one thing stopping me from completely dismissing it." The boys tensed knowing what she was alluding to.

"The Bracelet of Shadows. All the other fake calling cards focused on famous, already guarded objects," Marinette then opened the tome to a bookmarked page. It showed a silver cuff with two two oval black tourmalines on the ends. In the center were seven small onyxes in the shape of an S. The Bracelet of Shadows.

"This calling card focused on a bracelet that is not well known, but  _ would  _ have been a target for the miracles," The designer let the sentence hang in the air.

"So either this is a huge coincidence or our esteemed leader has returned to Paris once more," The female miracle thief said looking at her former crew. Either way, the three knew that a new path of destiny had made itself known. One that they had thought would remain shrouded in shadows. The path of a Thief. 


	2. Court Discussion

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Welcome back!
> 
> Fair warning this is a description heavy chapter.
> 
> I do not own Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Chat Noir.

"I am still not sold," Nathaniel said, though he would not meet Marinette's eyes.

"Dude, Mare is right. The Bracelet of Shadows was one of the items on our list. Nino's voice trailed off. Nathaniel glared at the DJ, but then sighed.

"Just because the person who sent out the calling card got one of the items from _that_ thing" Nate gestured to the tome in Marinette's hands, "Does not mean that it's Malek!"

"But it does mean that someone knows, that the bracelet is special," Marinette said firmly.

"We don't know that, not for sure. They could be after it for any number of reasons, including the name. I mean _dudes_ the Bracelet of Shadows? It's a cool name," Nino interjected. It got a small huff of amusement from both former thieves. They appreciated his attempt at humor, but it did nothing to dispel the dark cloud of unease. Nino couldn’t help but glance at the picture once more. He was surprised how easily he remembered it.

The Bracelet of Shadows was a piece of jewelry that belonged to one of France's spymasters. In one of his journals, he regarded it as a bit of a good luck charm. To the average person this tidbit would seem interesting, but nothing more than that. To the Miracles, this made the bracelet a mark. Nino couldn’t decide if it was a bad thing that this was the first thought that came to mind.

"It doesn't matter," Nathaniel said, startling Nino out of his musing. The artist stood up and grabbed the tome from Marinette, firmly closing it. He looked down at the relic which bound the thieves together once. With a determined look he went to the waste bin. “ this doesn’t concern us,” as he began to drop it, his hand was stopped.

"Except it does,"

Marinette and Nathaniel turned to Nino. His voice and expression were firm.

“Before we started the miracles we were four souls that drifted. None of us fit in with the rest of the crowd. The thieves gave us a purpose and tied us to one another. When we hung up our masks, it was one of the most painful times in my life, but I didn’t speak up. This time I am not staying quiet.” Nino resisted the urge to fidget under their intense concentration. He didn’t know what made him speak up, but he knew without a doubt that throwing away the book was not something he ever wanted to happen. He straightened up and looked at both of his friends. Marinette’s gaze held nothing but pride and compassion. Nathaniel’s on the other hand was full of apprehension.

"We took the name Cour des Miracles and we gave it new life. We took a name of the slums and the rejects and made it the name of the bold, the ones that rebelled. We took a speculation and made it a truth." Nino took a breath and reached for his courage. It was time to bring out the final whammy. Seeing Nino take a small breather Marinette decided to interject before it was too late.

“Before we rush in guns blazing let's check in with our missing member. We need to be sure that we are dealing with the legit leader of the Miracles instead of an interloper,” Marinette suggested. She could see that both boys tempers were heated. If they didn’t cool their heads with some logic then this would only end badly. It would most likely end with one of the roommates sleeping in her guest room. The boys nodded before pulling up their phones to message their friend, glancing at each other warily.

Unfortunately it seemed like their missing member couldn’t be reached. Calls went straight to voicemail, texts went unanswered, emails were ignored. Marinette finally had enough and called Malek’s mother. The only thing that the women could tell them that their friend was planning to transfer to France in the coming semester and that he was currently out of the country. 

“Well that was freaking useless. All we know is that he is dodging our calls and that he isn’t in England. We have no idea if he’s here and while we definitely could hack his accounts, I’d rather keep my frankly impressive rap sheet a bit shorter.” Nino said once Mare relayed the information to them. It had been hours since they started and still no word.

Nino’s eyes darted to the clock. The deadline for the heist was slowly drawing near. “I don’t know about you dudes but right now I am through with taking the passive route. "We need to be there tonight. Not in the crowd, but above it. We need to find out if this is a copycat, or our pain in the ass missing member. Are you in?" Nino looked into both of their eyes as he asked.

"You'll be going with or without us," Nathaniel stated, bluntly. He then smiled tiredly. "Might as well make sure you have back up. Count me in." The artist grasped Nino's forearm tightly. 

The two males turned to the third phantom thief. Marinette put up her hands and shrugged.

"You never needed to give me a pep talk. I was planning on going anyway. Now I am going because if this is indeed Malek’s handiwork, he needs his ass kicked for giving us the runaround," Mare said with a smirk. She then approached the closet and grabbed three boxes from her hidden cupboard. Setting hers aside the hidden heroine threw the boys their respective package. A smug smile grew on her face as she watched her friends' faces as they opened the gift.

"Dude," Nino said softly. His eyes wide as he took in the outfit.

"Incredible," Nathaniel breathed out. His eyes picking out the small details.

Marinette proudly smiled. This is why she wanted to become a designer. These looks of amazing and wonder that filled people up when they found something special.

While not identical to their old outfits they definitely were inspired by them. They even had the same color schemes. These were outfits that were created for the more mature individuals the group had become. “I know they are not the same, but to be honest I don’t think they should be. Our old outfits wouldn’t fit us, both as the people we are and literally.” Mare said with a shrug.

“What I want to know is how you got our measurements and why you even have these,” Nathan said bewildered.

“I never stopped making the outfits,” Mare admitted softly. “It was the one part of being the Court that I couldn’t give up.” 

The designer looked at the boys knowing that they had their own traditions that they never gave up.“ As for your measurements I am always making commissions for you guys. Frankly it would be sad if I didn’t know them.”

“Okay so we have the outfit, but we need something that can help disguise us and we no longer have the-” Nate paused, trying to figure out the right word, “ _items_ that we used all those years ago.”

“That is not necessarily true.” Nino said, rubbing the back of his neck. “Mare, do you still have that package I left here?"

"Which one? You currently hold the record for most break ins out of all our friend list, and as such have the most the most stuff here.” Marinette snarked. Nathaniel broke into peals of laughter. Nino opened his mouth to argue, but closed it knowing that Mare was correct. He had several gigs that lasted late and often crashed at Marinette’s place as it was closer than going all the way back to his dorm.

Mare rolled her eyes and smiled. “Check the guest room. That's where I leave most of the immediate group’s stuff.” Nino left and returned a few minutes later with a triumphant smirk on his face, the package held aloft. 

The two artists gaped at the contents. They held beautiful masks that were unique and eye catching. They also were able to mask at least some of the individuals basic features.

“These will work very nicely,” Marinette said with an appreciation, “Though I am curious where you found them?”

“At a costume shop where my gramps lives. They were expensive, but dude was it worth it.” Nino said, picking up the mask he claimed as his own. It was a silver colored full face mask that drew inspiration from a knight’s helm. It had a vertical opening from the mouth to the nose and indents in the shape of flowers and swirls.

“I have to say, these actually fit our personas quite well, it’s one hell of a coincidence that you found them, "Nathaniel mused, holding his mask to his face. His was a half mask that had the cracked look of porcelain. Around the mask were bronze colored decorations and in the center at the top of the mask was a sun like circle with a face imprinted in the center.

Marinette shook her head as she looked at her mask. Like Nathaniel hers was a half mask, but hers had feather like extensions. Two distinct designs diagonal from the other. The first were a group of pointed ovals that sparkled, the other were square like mirrors that had a purple tint to them. All of it was outlined in gold. “I believe that certain events are meant to happen. I think that this was one of them.”

“Thankfully these have sturdy ties but just in case we should use spirit gum to be on the safe side. Another thing we can use to help disguise ourselves is adding colored contacts. And before you ask Nino I have some that are your prescription.” Marinette assured her friend when she saw him open his mouth to protest. Nathaniel blinked and turned to the designer.

“Since when do you have his prescription for contacts?” He asked, slightly amused and disturbed by how prepared Marinette was.

“Since I have a frequent buyer discount from the company and he decided to cosplay as Gambit.” Marinette retorted. Nathaniel snorted as Nino turned red and quietly whined for them to shut up. This only made his friend laugh more.

“It was Alya’s idea and she wanted to do a couple cosplay. I already got plenty of side eye from Mare back then, I don’t need it from you now.” Nino said, a tiny bit exasperated. He remembered the look Marinette gave him when Alya proposed them go as the superhero couple. It took a lot for either of the friends to not burst into laughter at the irony. 

As The DJ looked at his friends examining the masks. A warm feeling started to spread within him. This was something he missed, the quiet comradery that existed within the crew of thieves. Of preparing for a heist, but still having time to tease one another. While being the hero Carapace was amazing the only identity he knew was Alya, but she didn’t know his, which meant that he had no one to talk to about the struggles of the balance. He had missed more than words could describe, this feeling of earned trust.

“Spit it out Mare.” Nathan’s voice broke not only Nino’s train of thought but also Marinette's.

“Huh?” 

“You were biting your lip and staring off into space. From experience whenever you bite your lip that means you have something you want to say, but you're not sure how we’re going to take it. So bite the bullet and lay it on us dudette” Nathaniel explained before gesturing for her to talk. Nino couldn’t help but snicker. The artist was right on the money when it came to Mare’s quirk.

Marinette huffs. ”Trust you to be one of the only people to pick that up.” She grumbled before taking a deep breath. “ It just occurred to me that we may as well go big and also change our hair. It would be one more aspect that could help disguise us.” 

Nathan looked at Marinette puzzled. “We used to change our hair back in the day anyways. What would be different now?”

“For one our old wigs aren’t here so we're going to have to improvise a bit. Two is that I only have a few wigs here and only some hair dye. I have an idea of how I can make it work, but you may not like the results.” Mare said eyeing Nate especially.

“I’m sure it won’t be that bad. What do you have in mind?” Nathaniel asked. Marinette smiled sheepishly but her eyes had a slight devious gleam to them. The artist shared a look at Nino.

“How do you feel about extensions?” Mare said, pulling out a package. Nate stared at the designer before groaning. He had spoken too soon.

*~*~*~*

Adrien stared at his computer in disbelief. The model had just gotten home to the manor when he decided to check the news. Three different sites all had similar stories. The model slumped in his chair as he tried to process a fact that that gave him both joy and anxiety.

The Cour de Miracles was back.

"Oh my Camembert what is it this time?" came the voice of Adrien’s Kwami Plagg.

“What are you talking about?” Adrien asked, slightly baffled.

“You have that look on your face the same one you get when you learn something about your obsession.” The Kwami of Destruction snarked at his boy. Adrien bit down the urge to correct the cat. His love for ladybug was _not_ an obsession, thank you very much. 

“It is about something I am passionate about, but it's not about M’lady,” Adrien said with a huff.

“Okay now you have my attention,” Plagg said. It wasn’t often that the university student focused on his own interest, well except for superheroing and Ladybug. The black cat couldn’t help but be, well, curious.

“Where to begin,” Adrien muttered to himself. He pondered where to begin before looking at his computer. While it would _definitely_ get him ribbing from his Kwami the best way to describe the situation was to use his file. Taking a deep breath he double clicked a file called **Alice Mocur Dress** and out poured dozens of pictures, videos, articles and notes all which pertain to the Phantom Thieves of Paris. 

Plagg looked at the large collection of documents and could only say “And here I thought your Ladybug obsession was bad.” Adrien simply rolled his eyes.

“The Cour de Miracles were a group of very skilled thieves that puzzled the public practically since the moment they showed up. They actually disappeared about a year before you showed up.” Adrien began his explanation pulling up some of the earlier articles and calling cards pictures.

“What so mysterious, I mean besides their identities?” Plagg asked. He was already losing interest. Adrien then decided to highlight some of artifacts that had been stolen. 

“These are some of the known objects that they took. People speculate there could have been more. What makes it interesting is that there was no concrete pattern to their heists. They didn’t go for the most expensive or well protected items. Sure there were some high profile pieces, but those were few and far between. For the most part they only focused on obscure items,” The model explained enthusiastically. 

“Hold up. You said for the _most_ part. What about the other times?” Plagg said his interest was once again captured. Adrien only smiled and pulled up a much smaller group of articles

“See that is where the enigma came in. There is no doubt that they were more known for their work as thieves, but they also were somewhat like dark guardian angels. They ended up doing a lot of good for this city,” Plagg looked at his boy skeptically.

“How the hell can Thieves be guardian angels, dark or otherwise?” The Kwami asked incredulously. 

“While the police don't like to admit it, the thieves were essential for taking down over a dozen corrupt individuals over the years. They return evidence that had gone missing in cold cases, pursued eye witnesses to come forth, when before they were to afraid to. They would even leave speculations and in depth plans of how some crimes could have been committed. They basically acted as consulting criminals.” Adrien said thinking of the time they helped his father discover who had been leaking his designs to the public. It had cemented their place as Adrien’s heroes as it ended up clearing Natalie’s name.

“They had this knack of knowing exactly who was corrupt, even when the person gave off a picture perfect persona. Like this one time they exposed A high level Judge that was seen as unbreakable. They ended up leading the police on a merry chase and brought them to a Rendezvous that the judge was having that showed him being bought off by a major drug lord.” Adrien remembered reading about that case and how the thieves had vanished during the excitement. What made him laugh was that the items they stole were placed on the table where the Judge sat with a note telling the police they were welcome.

“Of course there is speculation that they ended up tricking several corrupt rich criminals out of their money. It can’t be proven but a few online forums had some victims posting about how they received anonymous donations and cards signed with the Miracles logo,” Adrien said with an amused grin.

“Woah” The black cat exclaimed. No wonder his partner was so enthusiastic.

“That's not all. Occasionally they would break into museums or galleries, or even police stations and leave something. There was one time when they returned this priceless heirloom that had been stolen a decade ago. Another time they left a painting that they stole prior which they revealed was a forgery along with the actual piece.” Adrien finished his explanation with a bright smile.

“Okay color me impressed. These cats seem to thrive in throwing people off their game,” Plagg mused. “But that doesn’t explain why you are being so obsessive right now. I mean beside your normal level of fanboying.” The Kwami couldn’t help but tease the teen.

Adrien looked at his friend and showed him the website he had been on earlier and the other two sites he went to to fact check. “A calling card was submitted to the newspaper. Apparently they are back in Paris and are going to be stealing something tonight. Also they called out all of the miraculous wielders, even Hawkmoth.”

The blonde then began to blush at the fact that his idols had called him out personally and hadn’t called him a bad luck charm. He wasn’t always comfortable with what his miraculous represented, especially since a lot of civilians loved nothing more than to nitpick his performance as a hero. It was nice that for once the black cat was being used to symbolize something else.

Plagg noticed the blush but for once decided to not give his charge grief. “So what’s eating you?”

“I'm not sure what course of action to take. Heck I’m not even 100% sure that it's legitimately them or not. For the most part our team only focuses on Akumas and a few crimes here and there. Would the police even want our help?”

“Yeash Adrien. Why not just call up Ladybug and see what she thinks. As for the police, they trust us with the safety of Paris. We are technically employed by Paris. Plus l I don’t think that they are going to deny help in this area, especially since they can't seem to be able to catch this group on their own.”

“Are you Crazy?! Tonight is Ladybugs night off. She has warned all of the team, especially me that if we dare interrupt her night off for anything less than an Akuma, a natural disaster, or Hawkmoth giving himself up that she would hang us from the Arc de Triomphe!” Adrien said rapidly paling at the thought. He had no doubt that his Lady was serious.

Plagg cackled at this. He had forgotten about that threat. Dang, Tikki's newest chosen was a spitfire. “Alright then ask your other teammates. Who would go with you to check this out?”

Adrien thought for a second before replying “Well it’s Chloe’s night to patrol anyway, so I can count on her. In the same stroke that counts out Nino. I think I could convince Alya especially since she would get interested in the hype. Actually I should probably check the Ladyblog. Alya may have ended up leaving a message on the site.” Plagg couldn’t help but snort. That reporter could never leave a scoop alone. Sure enough the Miraculous teams chat site had been flooded by messages from Alya

“Well get to it. After I finish my Camembert of course.”

Adrien chuckled and agreed to his Kwami’s demands. No matter how much the cat annoyed him at times, he couldn’t help but love him.

*~*~*~*

“I hate you so much right now,” Nate hissed at Marinette who merely laughed as she jumped to the next roof. 

“Hey the more outrageous the hair the less others are going to remember our features.” Nino said with a shrug.

“Easy for you to say.” Nathan bit out, but knew the musician spoke the truth. With the new outfits, masks, contacts, and hair anyone would have a hard time linking the three college students to the infamous Cour de Miracle thieves.

Edgy was the only way to describe Nino’s disguise. He was as cool as ice in his gray dominated outfit. From his long silver wig to his punk style boots Nino gave off the air of someone you didn’t want to mess with.

Marinette’s purple outfit was the definition of elegance. From her plum colored updo to her honey red contacts, every part of her outfit demanded respect.

Nathan's new look was militaresque in blue. From his boots to his coat his outfit could be captured in one word: Proud. The only part that seemed off was his hair which, through a mixture of extensions and dye, was now half brown and half _pink_.

“You owe me big time Rani!" The artist grumbled. He nearly lost his footing as what he just said registered. Rani.

Gunner, Acelin, Malek, and Rani. The names they had adopted whenever they put on masks. It had been _years_ since they used them.

Even though he was the one who had protested the most, fought the hardest to keep out of this, in the end a part of him had never left. After all he hadn't even hesitated before using one of the codenames.

"You alright there?" Nino- No _Gunner_ asked, with a smile. 

"I'm just fine, but honestly I am surprised by how slow you are." Acelin teased before sprinting in front to the other two and with a laugh and a flip. It was good to be back.

*~*~*~*

The masked individual carefully began to prep the roof with the equipment he brought. He was incredibly nervous about tonight not only because of all the ways it could go wrong, but also in the fact that he didn’t know if the rest of the Court would show up.

He was pulled out of his thoughts when he heard a slight thump. To anyone else they would dismiss it as nothing but a trick of the mind. He wasn’t anyone else. Though he didn’t show it, he was smirking inwardly. It seems that he didn’t have to worry about doing the heist alone after all. He turned and saw another masked individual staring at him with a knife in her hand pointed straight at him. She was close enough to be on him in seconds but far away enough that he couldn’t immediately grab her.

“Hello Rani”

The girl only glared at him. “I can see two outcomes. Either you’re Malak and you're getting hit for springing this on us with no warning or you're an imposter and I get the pleasure of _burying_ you.” 

“I have no doubt about the fact that you would do just that, especially since you outnumber me. I’m guessing that Acelin and Gunner are not far from here and can hear everything we are saying?” The green clad figure said looking around. The girl raised an eyebrow before shrugging.

“You’re right they are near and they can hear everything. I’m not going to deny that. Now here is what is going to happen. You’ve got one chance to prove your identity that's it.” The girl stated so calmly that you would think she was talking about the weather.

“Don’t you recognize the leader of your old crew?” Malek couldn’t help but mockingly ask her.

“Appearances can be deceiving, if you really are Malek you would know that better than anyone,” Rani said finally starting to lower the knife, not putting it away, but no longer actively pointing at him.

“Very well, what am I to do to prove without a shadow of a doubt that I am indeed who I claim to be?” Malek said leaning against the roof. He decided that he may as well be comfortable while he was being threatened.

“You're going to answer a question, just one question,” Rani replied.

“That's awfully mundane. How disappointing. At least tell me that it's not going to be some plebian question like who are you or what are the names of the phantom thieves.”

Despite herself Rani began to laugh. “Like I am going to give you a chance to expose that. Please, as soon as I hit the roof you activated a recording device. You are testing me just as much as I’m testing you. The only difference is that I have back up. I have no idea if you boobie trapped the roof and you have no idea if I am indeed your teammate. Now if you don’t mind I would ask that you stop recording.” Reyna smiled and threw her knife at a small camera that he had planted earlier. She knew that there was bound to be others, but screw it she wanted to show that she was not someone to be messed with.

Malek couldn’t help but feel impressed. “And here I thought I was being subtle. I am now very certain that I am indeed speaking to my right hand woman. By all means ask your query.”

Rani looked at him. Many emotions flashed before her disguised eyes before settling on determination. 

“What was the first item you ever stole?”

* * *

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And that is a wrap. What did you think?
> 
> Anyone curious why the file was called Alice Mocur Dress?
> 
> Thank you for all the people who chose to read my story or leave Kuddos. A special thanks to my best friend mystic for being my first reviewer and biggest supporter.

**Author's Note:**

> Thoughts?  
> Also who guessed that she was talking to our favorite tomato head.
> 
> This was inspired by Carmen Sandiego, Persona 5, and a few others that will be revealed.


End file.
